Three Phase Current - Simple Calculation

By Steven on 2/28/2009 9:47 PM Filed Under [Electrical Fundamentals], [Power Systems], [Buildings Technology] | 33 Comments Popular tags: Theory, Fundamentals, Three Phase

The calculation of current in a three phase system has been brought up on our site feedback and is a discussion I seem to get involved in every now and again. While some colleagues prefer to remember formulas or factors, my approach is to do resolve the problem step by step using basic principles. I thought it would be good to write this down in case it may prove useful to someone else. Three Phase Power and Current The power taken by a circuit (single or three phase) is measured in watts W (or kW). The product of the voltage and current is the apparent power and measured in VA (or kVA) . The relationship between kVA and kW is the power factor (pf):

kW = kVA x pf

Single phase system - this is the easiest to deal with. Given the kW and power factor the kVA can be easily worked out. The current is simply the kVA divided by the voltage. As an example, consider a load consuming 23 kW of power at 230 V and a power factor of 0.86:

kVA = kW / power factor = 23/0.86 = 26.7 kVA (26700 VA) Current = VA / voltage = 26700/230 = 116 A

Three phase system - The main difference between a three phase system and a single phase system is the voltage. In a three phase system we have the line to line voltage (V LL) and the phase voltage (VLN), related by:

VLL = 3 x VLN

I find that the easiest way to solve three phase problems is to convert them to a single phase problem. Take a three phase motor (with three windings, each identical) consuming a given kW. The kW per winding (single phase) has to be the total divided by 3. Similarly a transformer (with three windings, each identical) supplying a given kVA will have each winding supplying a third of the total power. To convert a three phase problem to a single phase problem take the total kW (or kVA) and divide by three. As an example, consider a balanced three phase load consuming 36 kW at a power factor of 0.86 and voltage of 400 V (VLL) and 230 V (VLN):

three phase power is 36 kW, single phase power = 36/3 = 12 kW now follow the above single phase method

kVA = kW / power factor = 12/0.86 = 13.9 kVA (13900 VA) Current = VA / voltage = 13900/230 = 60 A

Easy enough. To find the power given current, multiply by the voltage and then the power factor to convert to W. For a three phase system multiply by three to get the total power. Using Formulas Derivation of Formula - Example Balanced three phase system with total power P (kW), power factor pf and line to line voltage VLL . Convert to single phase problem:

Single phase apparent power Q1ph (kVA):

Phase current I (kA) is the single phase apparent power divided by the phase to neutral voltage (and given VLN=VLL / 3):

Simplifying (and with 3 = 3 x 3):

The above method relies on remembering a few simple principals and manipulating the problem to give the answer. Generally this is the method I use. More traditionally formulas may be used to give the same result. These can be easily derived from the above, giving for example:

I = kW / ( 3 x pf x VLL ), in kA

Efficiency & Reactive Power Other things to consider while carrying out calculations may include the efficiency of equipment. Knowing that efficiency of power consuming equipment is the output power divided by the input power, again this can easily accounted.for Reactive power is not discussed in the article and more details can be found on our Wiki. Summary By remembering that a three phase power (kW or kVA) is simply three times the single phase power, any three phase problem can be simplified. Divide kW by the power factor to get the kVA. VA is simply the current times the voltage, so knowing this and the voltage can give the current. When calculating the current use the phase voltage which is related to the line voltage by the square root of three. Using these rules it is possible to work out any three phase problem without the need to remember and/or resort to formulas.